MLL Collegiate Draft 2011: Quint Kessenich's Mock Draft

Drafting players before their senior campaign is a crap shoot. Without the MLL Senior combine and player/organizational interviews, MLL brass will rely on junior season production. The upside is that seniors will be eligible to play in the MLL the moment their college season ends.

Qunit Kessenich offers his mock draft for Friday's event, held in Baltimore.

First round

1. Nationals: Kevin Crowley, M, Stony Brook: Crowley led Stony Brook to the NCAA quarterfinals last spring while putting up ridiculous stats. Playing for Team Canada last summer in Manchester has made him MLL-ready.

2. Rochester: Joel White, LSM/D, Syracuse: My gut says White or maybe even Syracuse goalie John Galloway. Rochester can use help everywhere except attack (Ned Crotty, Mike Leveille, Kenny Nims, Casey Powell). BJ Ohara must replace Kevin Leveille, DJ Driscoll and Chris Rotelli. Rochester also needs goalie help and may not want to risk waiting until pick No. 8 to secure Galloway. The Syracuse netminder is widely regarded as the top stopper in the class. Don't be surprised if Toronto trades goalie Brett Queener to Rochester before the draft.

3. Denver: Billy Bitter, A, UNC: Shamel Bratton is a no-brainer pick at No. 3, but sources say Chesapeake would like to trade for Denver attackman Drew Westervelt. If that happens, the Outlaws will look to add an attackman. Add to a potential departure of Westervelt the fact that Outlaws Matt Brown is getting more and more involved in his collegiate coaching responsibilities at Denver, (should be considered at Marquette), so Denver will look to add a playmaker like North Carolina's Billy Bitter.

4. Boston: Shamel Bratton, M, UVA: The hard-luck Cannons could use a midfielder or an in-your-face defender. It would be difficult to bypass Shamel Bratton at No. 4, but Billy Daye — a former Tar Heel — may be leaning to defender Ryan Flanagan of North Carolina because the Cannons defense ain't getting any younger. Bratton and Paul Rabil would make for a scary combo.

5. Long Island: Zach Brenneman, M, Notre Dame: Jim Mule has told me he wants to add offensive players. If Bitter or Shamel Bratton are still available, Mule's decision is easy. If they have been taken, he'll choose between Jay Car and Zach Brenneman. Shamel is still on the board, that's great news for a franchise who will benefit from a buzz and uptick in ticket sales.

6. Nationals: Jeremy Thompson, M, Syracuse: With picks 6 and 7 stacked together, Toronto can get two of the following players: Jeremy Thompson, Jay Card, Stephen Keougho or Jordan McBride.

Round Two

7. Nationals: Jay Card, A, Hofstra: Talking to coaches, Card appears to be the most highly regarded attack man in this class not named Billy Bitter.

8. Rochester: John Galloway, G, Syracuse: If Galloway is still on the board, he'll go to Rochester. If he's gone, I think coach BJ Ohara will be looking at Jovan Miller, Grant Catalino, Jeremy Thompson or John Lade.

9. Denver: Ryan Flanagan, D, UNC: Rhamel Bratton may be a better player in the freestyle MLL than he is in the over-coached NCAA game. Denver general manager Brian Reese is a Terp alum and may gravitate to charismatic LSM Brian Farrell or the unrelated Schmidts from Maryland.

10. Boston: Barney Ehrmann, D, Georgetown: The Cannons return Matt Casey, Greg Downing, Pat Heim, Paul Rabil and Brad Ross at midfield. Benson Erwin and JJ Morrissey were picked up in the Supplemental Draft. Anticipate they'll take either a defender or a midfielder, depending on who they took at No. 4. Top candidates would be Ryan Flanagan, Barney Ehrmann, David Earl, Kevin Ridgway, John Lade, Sam Barnes and Rhamel Bratton.

11. Long Island: Rhamel Bratton, M, UVA: The Lizards, who made a terrific run into the MLL finals in 2010 but ran out of gas, must add depth, speed and unselfish passers to their midfield. Long Island natives Rhamel Bratton and Zach Brenneman make a lot of sense here.

12. Boston: David Earl, M, Notre Dame: This senior class is loaded with competent goal scorers and defenders, but who is the right fit in Cambridge? Defensively, Boston has Kyle Sweeney, Chris Passavia, Jack Reid, (Ryan Flanagan), Mitch Belisle and Ryan Nizolek. That seems like enough. The attack will be Ryan Boyle, Matt Poskay and Max Quinzani. Players like Jovan Miller, Brian Farrell, Barney Ehrmann, David Earl look best on the board here.

14. Rochester: Jovan Miller, M, Syracuse: Maryland's Grant Catalino is a Rochester native, but the former Chicago franchise is stacked at attack. The MLL is a midfielders' league, and Jovan Miller has the well rounded defense to offense style.

15. Denver: Jack McBride, A, Princeton: The talent rich class of 2011 still has players like Kevin Ridgway, Sam Barnes, David Earl, Ryan Young, Jack McBride, Jeremy Boltus, Barney Ehrmann and Brett Schmidt on the board. If Denver does not trade Westervelt to Chesapeake, it's likely he will get more runs at midfield next summer.

16. Boston: John Lade, D, Syracuse: The Cannons look to the Orange to bolster their defense.

17. Long Island: Steve Serling, M, Hofstra: Jim Mule will be looking for a playmaking midfielder or third attackman. Lafayette transfer Steve Serling, now with Hofstra, fits the playmaking mold and has proven he can dish the rock. Serling put up huge numbers last year for Lafayette and is earning a graduate degree from Hofstra this spring.

18. Nationals: Sam Barnes, D, Notre Dame: The newly named franchise would benefit from an American-born defender who can orchestrate slides and coordinate a unit. After missing the 2010 season with injury, Barnes is back at Notre Dame.

Round Four

19. Nationals: Kevin Ridgway, D, Notre Dame: The million-dollar question for Toronto is whether Joe Walters is playing MLL this summer, and how do their NLL players emerge after a physically taxing winter. The early draft hurts. Tempting to take players like Stephen Keough, Jamie Lincoln or Adam Jones here...or even another Fighting Irish defender like Ridgway.

20. Rochester: Brian Karalunas, D, Villanova: Brian Farrell of Maryland is still on the board, some GMs love his game, and others worry about his shaky cover skills. High-scoring Grant Catalino is still undrafted. Villanova LSM Brian Karalunas is a beast who plays with terrific tempo. Coach BJ O'Hara must replace DJ Driscoll.

21. Denver: Dan Burns, M, Maryland: The defensive midfielder Burns is on everyone's radar. The top SSDmids appear to be Burns, Peter Mezanotte of Towson and Steven Denapoli of Hofstra.

22. Boston: Brett Schmidt, D, Maryland: In typical years, this is a throwaway pick - but not in 2011 - it will yield a very very good player. Terps Max and Brett Schmidt are steals here.

23. Long Island: Zach Howell, A, Duke: Lizards will continue to add Long Island based attack and midfielders. Jim Mule feels that Zach Howell of Duke could be a good third guy, supporting fellow Blue Devils Matt Danowski and Zack Greer.

24. Chesapeake: Brian Farrell, LSM, Maryland: The Bayhawks traded away their 2011 draft picks for an MLL title in 2010. They got the Steinfeld Cup, but they must watch their competitors fatten their rosters with a star-studded senior class. Don't be surprised to see owner Brendan Kelly and president Dave Cottle trade up. Rochester wants Matt Abbott.

Quint Kessenich covers Major League Lacrosse for Insidelacrosse and ESPN. He will be announcing the collegiate draft (8 rounds) on Friday January 21 at 8:30pm to 11pm on Espn3.com at the Power Plant Live in downtown Baltimore. The event is open to the public.